Hosts suddenly lose ability to contact BOINC project

[ChertseyAl]

Not sure where to ask this, so I'll try here as it's probably the best fit :)

Every now and then, a random host (all XP32) loses the ability to contact a random BOINC project, it just gets "project temporarily unavailable". It looks as if the project is down, but it isn't as I can still see it in a browser on that host, and other hosts hanging off the same network switch still communicate without problems. If I detach I can't then reattach :(

I've checked all the local BOINC settings, no firewalls/antivirus/proxies in use (apart from router firewall), hosts file OK, can ping/tracert the project from the host etc etc. The project used to run fine, but just suddenly dies :(

Fired up YAFU again recently, all of the hosts that I run it on connect and get work fine. But one random one won't. In the past I've seen BURP and Pirates die in the same way. And others that I can't remember.

I'd usually blame this on dodgy firewalls/av/routers etc, but these are clean XP installs with no junkware installed, and the project used to run fine until Sudden Death Syndrome hits it.

Any ideas? A thorough google just comes up with the usual stuff about firewalls, proxies and the like :( Oh, these are all BOINC 5.10.45 - Don't want to downgrade to a newer dumbed-down version thank you very much ;)

Cheers,

Al.

[gopher_yarrowzoo]

I get this on the newer builds as well random "unable to connect". I don't disconnect I just leave it a while and then "Update" on the project..
Nothing wrong with the newer versions 6.10.58 running here and on the XP32
Reminds me I need to go close the case on a host it's getting a little COLD for it - temp of CPU is around 30c... it is in the attic...

[Bigred]

I'm running 6.12.34 on XP32 with no problems. It even runs backup projects correctly. On work unit at a time instead of download a large quanity of them.

[vaughan]

I've had a similar problem to that reported by the OP. One machine just refused to connect to a project. Other machines on the same network switch connected fine. Never resolved the issue, that's why we have pharms :)
ANother problem I see occasionally is where BOINC will disconnect from the computer. I try to log in using Advanced - Computer - Hostname with the name as localhost and BOINC manager fills the password section with asterix's. Sometimes it will connect now but other times it needs this process repeating, rarer occasions it refuses to connect. A re-boot of Windows fixes it every time. I don't know what causes it, just BOINC being stupid I guess.

[ChertseyAl]

Unrelated, but my sole 6.12.34 host has been behaving like an idiot.

Ran itself dry for the second time yesterday. Just sat there refusing to ask for work despite empty cache. Downgraded to 6.10.60 (actually, an upgrade, next stop 5.10.45!). Yes, 6.10.60 is rubbish, but at least it manages to get work.

6.12.34 has a mass of bugs. I'd post a list over at the BOINC forums, but I'll just get the usual suspects telling me that I'm wrong :)

Think I'll just uninstall BOINC on the troublesome machines and start again. With 5.10.45 of course :)

Al.

[ChertseyAl]

Spent some time on this today, mainly because I'm aiming for a 10k on Pirates ;)

Tried diffing a 'broken' host against a working one - Nothing.

Spent ages faffing with Windows networking settings - Nothing.

Did a BOINC repair install - Everything now works! :)

I can safely say that every BOINC messsage board reporting this problem is full of amateur guesswork. AOL problems? Really? Yeah, proxy? Firewall? Random guesses from people who have no clue :(

Nope, turns out that BOINC is a flake (Amazed!). Even post-repair I can't see how it screwed up.

So, there ya go. Hope this comes up in a google search to save people the agony of trawling the random cr*p from the BOINC MBs and those that profess to be 'experts' :)

Oh, Happy New Year BTW :)

Al.